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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: shower · coach · band · foot · mine · perch · bear · wound

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. shower — to wash
  4. mine — for digging
  5. band — a music group
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. bear — the animal
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. wound — an injury
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. perch — the fish
  18. shower — rain
  19. band — a ring
  20. foot — a measure
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. bear — the animal
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wound — an injury

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com